Jamaican culture is filled with tales of wonderful folklore. Anansi and "duppy" stories help to create a legacy that is rich in history and sinister happenings.. A national pastime of older Jamaicans is sitting down and talking about the dearly departed. Their banter usually  includes how many times they had sightings of the dead person, the dreams they had concerning them, and the most morbid details of reliving the day when they were buried.

 

Jamaicans are the only folks I know who love to take pictures of funerals as if they were conducting a photo shoot. Seriously, how many poses can you get of a corpse?

 

Jamaicans work the camera as if they were getting ready for "Funeraria Vogue". For days, they talk about how lovely the person looked, what they were wearing etc. Jamaicans are very much like Egyptians, their dead, gets buried with everything except the kitchen sink.

 

When one gets old in Jamaica, their favorite subject is of the dead. Therefore, if you are going to be around them, it is prudent to get a macabre nature, appreciating all things dead or decaying.

 

I was a little girl when Granny's friend, Mrs. Podmajah passed away. Although she was a good friend of Granny Gheeta, they spent a lot of time arguing. They argued about everything. From how to cook to how to raise the children. They were constantly bickering. Despite of all of their "run ins", they always looked out for each other.

 

Granny would often say, "There is no ghost like an Indian ghost. If you think I am miserable and terrible now, wait until I am gone?"

 

This phrase always scared the goodness into us, because when Granny Gheeta went on a tirade, everyone ran for cover, so we could only imagine how she would be if there weren't any boundaries.

We knew that when Granny Gheeta died, she would be a force to reckon with.

 

So, when Mrs. Podmajah passed away, Granny conducted a grand puja throughout the house. Granny cleansed the house and burned incense from dawn till dusk. when I asked her why was she smoking us all out, she said, "Although I really cared for Mrs. Podmajah, I know that she is going to want to visit all the time, but she has to understand that we are on different plains now."

 

I was startled by her remark and questioned her further. "What do you mean Granny?"

 

She continued, seriously, "Sometimes when people die, it takes a while for them to know they are dead, so they roam around until someone banishes them. The dead and the living cannot mix all the time."

 

This information seemed a bit "far out" for me, but it was just another wacky day with Granny Gheeta. She would make sure that the house always had bright colors in it, because she said that spirits did not like bright colors.

 

Therefore, when Mrs. Podmajah died Granny Gheets was on a watch and pray mission. The day of the ninth night, when family members and friends celebrate the life of the deceased, Granny was busy keeping unwanted guests out of Mrs. Podmajah's house. It seemed as if all the vultures descended as soon as the word was spread about Mrs. P's death.

 

People robbed her garden of flower pots, they helped themselves to her fine china and valuable furniture pieces. Mrs. P only had one son who had lived in England for several years. He basically came to bury his mother and wanted to return immediately to the UK, however his wife had other ideas. Her eyes brightened as if she had struck gold when she saw the contents of Mrs. Podmajah's house.

 

Mrs. P had died and left a substantial amount of money for her philanthropic endeavors. This decision was not accepted by the younger, Mrs.Podmajah, she was determined to take all that was able to fit in her suitcase or a barrel, back to the United Kingdom.

 

Granny Gheeta was so horrified by the cold, calculating nature of Mrs. Podmajah's daugter-in-law, that she often stood at her gate many evenings with her fan and a broom. She was determined to preserve the legacy of Mrs. P.

 

After the will had been read, many distant relations, helped themselves to her pots, pans, figurines, window dressings and silverware. While everyone else was busy pillaging, the daughter-in-law, Savla was helping herself to every piece of jewelry and the Saris Mrs. P  owned.

 

Granny Gheeta tried her best to fight off the scavengers, but they were too crafty for her. Granny  told me that Savla went In the middle of the night to Madden's funeral home and helped herself to Mrs. P's watch, earrings, nose ring, anklets and rings. She even exchanged the swarovski crystal sari for a cheaper version and replaced the jewelry with cubic zirconia replicas. 

 

Granny also predicted that on the night before Savla and her husband were planning to depart for England, that Mrs. P's ghost was going to show up. That evening, Granny fasted and prayed, she sat in the dark watching Mrs. Podmajah's house for the arrival of her ghost. Granny fell asleep, then she told me she felt a cool, swift breeze, and she woke up briskly to a tap on her knee. When she looked across the front yard, she saw Mrs. P. in a white sari saunter through the front gate and proceeded into the guest room. The next thing Granny Gheets heard was horrible shrieking.

 

Granny remained praying the whole night, until she received a phone call from one of her neighbors alerting her to what had happened. Mrs. Podmajah was a busy ghost that night. Everyone who violated her personal belongings, got a slap acoss the face resulting into several cricked necks.

 

While Granny was on the phone, she glimpsed, Savla getting into a car bound for the Airport. Granny noticed that her neck was in a cast and her face was twisted.

 

I ran to Granny's side, urging her to end her phonecall, "Granny, Granny, something has happened to the lady visitor next door. Come, Granny......Come!"

 

Granny ended her call and glanced quickly through the window. "Magli, didn't I tell you, that this would happen? Mrs. Podmajah was a very busy spirit last night. They should have never messed with her belongings."

 

Granny took me by my tiny hands, and said, "Never mess with anyone's effects when they die. Wait, for them to convey their wishes. If they want you to have a momento to remember them, they will put it in writing, but never you go and help yourself. That daugter-in-law will never have any peace, neither will any of those people who violated her property."

 

I looked at Granny with innocent eyes, "So Granny Gheeta, if you die, can I play with your things?"

 

She answered sternly, "You don't play with my things now, why would you want to play with them when I am gone. Just remember, to respect dead peoples' things!"

 

Mrs. Podmajah's house became known as the haunted house on the block, partly because her soul and personal property were violated as soon as she died. No one had the decency to wait a while before dividing her belongings. Granny swore that she often saw her ghost in a very distressed condition, lamenting over her things.

 

People may say the dead have no power, but from my childhood experience I know that a soul that is ill at rest, becomes a restless and mischievous spirit.

 

Granny Gheeta felt that whenever she misplaced an object in her house, that Mrs. Podmajah was around, reminding her to protect her personal items.

 

Spirits have a way of resurfacing, sometimes to tell stories or to protect those they love from harm. I should know, Granny Gheeta's busier now, than when she was alive, constantly reminding me of my Indian culture.

 

She always said, "There is no ghost like an Indian ghost."